The following is the U.S. Navy’s: Report to Congress on the Annual Long-Range Plan for Construction of Naval Vessels for FY 2015, or colloquially known as the 30-year shipbuilding plan. The report, usually due with the Navy’s budget submission, was given to Congress on July 1, 2014. Read More
A unit for the future aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) rests on the assembly platen at Newport News Shipbuilding, Va. US Navy Photo
The following is the June 20, 2014 Congressional Research Service report, Navy Force Structure and Shipbuilding Plans: Background and Issues for Congress. Read More
The following is the Feb. 10, 2014 Congressional Research Service report: Navy Force Structure and Shipbuilding Plans. Read More
From the Congressional Budget Office report, Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2014 to 2023:
The Congress faces an array of policy choices as it confronts the dramatic increase in the federal government’s debt over the past several years and the prospect of large annual budget deficits and further increases in that debt that are projected to occur in coming decades under current law. Read More
From the Nov. 19, 2013 Government Accountability Office report, Navy Shipbuilding: Opportunities Exist to Improve Practices Affecting Quality.
The Navy has experienced significant quality problems with several ship classes over the past several years. It has focused on reducing the number of serious deficiencies at the time of delivery, and GAO’s analysis shows that the number of deficiencies—particularly “starred” deficiencies designated as the most serious for operational or safety reasons—has generally dropped. Read More
From the Nov. 8, 2013 Congressional Research Service report, Navy Force Structure and Shipbuilding Plans: Background and Issues for Congress.
The Navy’s proposed FY2014 budget requests funding for the procurement of 8 new battle force ships (i.e., ships that count against the Navy’s goal for achieving and maintaining a fleet of 306 ships). The 8 ships include two Virginia-class attack submarines, one DDG-51 class Aegis destroyer, four Littoral Combat Ships (LCSs), and one Mobile Landing Platform/Afloat Forward Staging Base (MLP/AFSB) ship. The Navy’s proposed FY2014-FY2018 five-year shipbuilding plan includes a total of 41 ships—the same number as in the Navy’s FY213-FY2017 five-year shipbuilding plan, and one less than the 42 ships that the Navy planned for FY2014-FY2018 under the FY2013 budget submission. Read More
From the Congressional Budget Office September, 2013 Analysis of the U.S. Navy’s Fiscal Year 2014 Shipbuilding Plan:
The 2013 and 2014 shipbuilding plans are very similar, but not identical, with respect to the Navy’s total inventory goal (in military parlance, its requirement) for battle force ships, the number and types of ships the Navy would purchase over 30 years, and the proposed funding to implement the plans. Read More
An image of the French-built amphibious warship Mistral (L-9013).
One of the most significant decisions of Russia’s now-disgraced and soon-to-be-indicted former minister of defense Anatoly Serdyukov was the decision to procure Mistral–class helicopter carriers from the French. That was a radical departure from previous Soviet/Russian doctrine, which demanded that the country be able to produce all its own weapons systems. The total reliance on domestic suppliers was seen as a way to ensure the country’s sovereignty: the Russians thought that dependence, or even potential dependence on any external supplier would place major constraints on their decision-making. When one sees how the United States is able to comprehensively influence the foreign and defense policies of countries that rely on its military hardware, the Russian position does not seem without merit or logic. Read More
The U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) released its May report on the economic impact of the shipbuilding industry in the U.S. The following was from the executive summary:
Currently there are 117 shipyards in the United States, spread across 26 states, that are classified as active shipbuilders. In addition, there are more than 200 shipyards engaged in ship repairs or capable of building ships but not actively engaged in shipbuilding. The majority of shipyards are located in the coastal states, but there also are active shipyards on major inland waterways such as the Great Lakes, the Mississippi River, and the Ohio River. Employment in shipbuilding and repairing is concentrated in a relatively small number of coastal states, with the top five states accounting for 62 percent of all private employment in the shipbuilding and repairing industry. Read More
An undated artist’s rendering of the Ohio Replacement. Naval Sea Systems Command
The Navy’s top acquisition official told the Senate Armed Services Committee Seapower Subcommittee that talks with the Defense Department “have not progressed” in putting the Ohio-class ballistic-missile replacement program into a special National Capital Ships Account.
Testifying on 8 May, Sean Stackley said the long-range impact of keeping the 12 Ohio-class ballistic-missile submarines in the Navy’s shipbuilding account means “we will not be able to hit the numbers” to build other ships. Read More
